


irretrievably lost

by rotissereriechicken



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Angst, Enemies to Lovers, M/M, Slow Burn, hopefully, jason gideon is reid's adopted father but he's kind of shitty at it, morgan's there for moral support, sorta - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:27:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26493376
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rotissereriechicken/pseuds/rotissereriechicken
Summary: "They may not know each other to say it, but it was never hidden. How much ever they hated each other, fate ties them together."- Parul Wadhwa
Relationships: Aaron Hotchner/Spencer Reid, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 27





	1. chapter one

**Author's Note:**

> *cross posting this on wattpad
> 
> I hope to finish this fic series, it's genuinely interesting to me. And then hopefully I can finish the other hotchreid fic I'm working on. 
> 
> Hope you all enjoy! Stay hydrated and stay safe!

Gideon, Spencer would say, was a gentle father. He pushed Spencer to pursue education, obtaining books from other countries- ones the young man had wished to read, only having mentioned them in passing- and paying tutors and scholars to come teach the prince, so if anything Spencer owes the king everything.

Spencer also loved the autonomy his adoptive father gave him. Of course wherever the prince went, his escort had to follow, but it still felt freeing to walk around the kingdom.

So to say the young man was furious at this very moment was an understatement.

Gideon called Spencer to the courtyard. He assumed it was a gift from Dave, and at this point in time he really wished it was because that was easier to comprehend than the truth.

"What in the hell are you implying?" Spencer yelled, his voice cracking. "You're mad. Absolutely deranged."

"It's for the betterment of the kingdom, now if you'll stop acting like it's the end of the world." Gideon motioned for Spencer's guard to step forward before turning back to his son, "You have to get ready to meet him."

"I don't care if the world's on fire and the only way to save it is to go through with this, I'm not marrying some random man for you." Spencer argued. "You can send a messenger to them right now that I'm not going through with it."

Morgan looked between his ward and the king, and for his own safety stood a few steps beside Spencer. The younger man huffed, face red and hair in disarray.

Gideon sighed, keeping a calm façade. "Spencer, I know how this must feel-"

"Do you?!" Spencer cut him off, "You know what it's like to be married off like some- some cow at an auction?"

"Spencer." The king's voice echoed through the courtyard, passing guards throwing glances as they changed post. Spencer looked ready to cry, eyes watery, nose and cheeks red. Gideon sighed, stepping closer to the young man. He reached out to touch Spencer, only for Spencer to pull his arm out of reach. "Do this one thing for me. For David. For Erin. I'm not asking, I'm telling you. There is going to be a party tonight, David is hosting. And for the sake of public appearance, you're going to behave. Your fiancé will be there, you need to make a good first impression."

The prince looked down at the ground, mumbling, "Yes sir."

"Go get ready, we leave soon."

Morgan followed Spencer out of the courtyard, the younger's anger causing all the help to jump out of his way as he moved through the halls. Morgan sighed, "It could be worse."

"How could it possibly be worse?" Spencer said, glaring at his friend. 

Morgan stopped, "Yeah, I don't actually know the answer to that. But this isn't forever you know."

Spencer rolled his eyes, walking into his bedroom. "Right, of course civil divorce. I'm sure the man I'm marrying is going to accept that later down the road when we've- for image sake- adopted 4 kids with grandchildren on the way."

"Whoa, ok slow down," Morgan laughed, placing his scabbard on the desk in the joining study. "He probably doesn't like this any more than you do. Who's to say this guy wants to marry you?" 

"Thanks, that makes me feel so much better about myself," Spencer mumbled, taking his pants and shirt off. He shuffled through his wardrobe, "You have a point though."

Morgan snorted, "I try, kid."

"I mean really, who would want to marry someone like me? I've heard the rumors they tell about me in the other courts," Spencer said, turning and holding up two shirts. "Black or white?"

"Black, according to Penny it's sexier," Morgan answered. "You do have some nasty rumors flying around, but obviously anyone who bases their attraction to someone on rumors is not someone I'd want to chat in bed with."

"Ah yes, Gideon's pompous brat, again fully aware." Spencer said, buttoning up his shirt and tucking it into a pair of high waisted black slacks. "Maybe tonight I'll live up to it. That way he can call off the marriage because I 'can't act right'. How funny would that be?"

"Hilarious, I'm sure. But if I get in trouble over this, you're dead." Morgan threatened, however his tone of voice carried no actual threat. He watched Spencer button up one of his vests, "The purple looks nice."

"Thank you, I'm sure one of my father's seamstresses will make me change," Spencer mumbled, fiddling with the ascot around his neck. 

Morgan chuckled, moving into Spencer's personal space and batting the man's hands away from the piece of cloth. "Let me fix it." 

Spencer huffed, "This whole situation has me stressed. I can't tie this normally."

"I'd say calm down, but I don't think that would be very helpful." Morgan stepped back and admired his work, before Spencer moved to grab one of his overcoats from the wardrobe. "If it helps, I can always take you back home, I'll take the fall for that. If you're feeling overwhelmed let me know."

The prince nodded, looking at himself in the mirror, "I appreciate it, really. Does this look ok?"

Morgan chuckled, "I don't know, I barely know how to dress myself."

"You are so unhelpful," Spencer frowned.

The ball was more extravagant than Spencer had wished for. Dave had opened his court for public viewing, and that showed through the crowd that had gathered. Gideon pushed them through the crowd until they reached his friend.

The older man was laughing with Strauss and another older lady, obviously working his charm for another marriage. Dave noticed them moving towards him, his eyes holding a familiar warmth. Spencer wondered if the older man would agree with him over how stupid this whole arranged marriage idea was.

"Look who it is! My favorite nephew!" Dave said, pulling Spencer towards him and pressing a kiss to the prince's forehead. 

Strauss scoffed, "He's your only nephew Dave."

"That's why he's my favorite, Erin," Dave said. "How is everything? I heard you're getting married away, how's that?"

Spencer glared at Gideon before looking back to Dave, "If it was up to me I wouldn't be getting married."

"Eric is just trying to avoid a war," Strauss said, folding her arms across her chest. "The minute that man passes away, file for a separation. I'm sure Aaron isn't happy about this either."

"Aaron?" Spencer asked, "Who's that?"

"Oh figlio," Dave sighed, looking over to Gideon. "You marry the boy away and don't even introduce him to his soon-to-be husband?"

Gideon frowned, "He's going to be here, I assumed they'd meet tonight."

"Jason," Strauss reached up and pinched the bridge of her nose, frustration clear in her voice.

Spencer looked back to Morgan who shrugged. The young man's eyes wandered to the crowd behind him, the faces of the people were bright with smiles and laughter filtered under the sound of the music in the room. He wondered who exactly in the crowd was his betrothed. All he had was a name and based off the secrecy from his father, that's all that Spencer was going to have. Aaron. 

"What are you thinkin' about in that big brain of yours?" Dave asked, stepping up beside Spencer. 

He looked back to see that his father and Strauss had taken their leave, and Morgan was flirting with some random lady in the crowd. Spencer frowned, "His name is Aaron?"

"Ah, your fiancé?" Dave nodded slowly, "You've met Eric Hotchner before-"

"The King of all Dicks? Yes, I have," Spencer rolled his eyes.

Dave laughed loudly, gaining the attention of those close to the two. It faded to a soft smile, "His son is Aaron." The smile dropped into a frown, "I know this is less than desirable, marrying someone you don't know. But it won't be horrific if you make the effort to meet Aaron halfway, he's a nice young man. He probably doesn't want to marry anyone because of his Dad anymore than you do."

"He can prove that himself, for now I'll try and make myself undesirable so he can call it off," Spencer repeated his plan to Dave, though it was less of a plan and more of a joke. They were both aware of the fact neither could call off the marriage without starting a war between most- if not all- the kingdoms nearby.

The conversation drifted to something more comfortable, the two laughing quietly as the crowd shifted, dancing to the music playing in the court.

"When do you plan on meeting your betrothed? Hopefully before the end of the night," Dave teased. He clapped Spencer on the back, "Go have some fun, you've humored an old man with conversation enough."

"You're not old," Spencer pointed out before Dave walked away from him. Spencer frowned, looking through the crowd for his guard. He sighed when he couldn't find him, then moved into the crowd.

If he was going to be forced to spend the rest of his life with some random man he's never met, then the last night before that happens he's going to do something to remember it. Spencer felt the rush of wind from outside before he saw the night sky, the moon lighting his path into Dave's garden area. He had the floorplan of the castle memorized so walking with the confidence that he will not be seen, Spencer looked up to the sky because the stars were much prettier than the hedges lining the path.

Of course, not watching where he was going, he shouldn't have been so surprised to run right into someone. Spencer stumbled back, thrown off balance, when two warm hands grabbed his arms to steady him.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going," a voice, low and soft, apologized. The man Spencer had run into was speaking he'd deduced because otherwise who else was talking. Spencer looked at the man in front of him and decided that his night got a whole lot better. The moonlight was soft on the man's cheekbones and black hair, highlighting absolutely how attractive this stranger was. "Are you okay?"

Spencer nodded, "Didn't expect to run into anyone out here, that's all."

"I needed a break from the festivities," the stranger confessed, retracting his hands and placing them behind his back. Spencer noted the formal attire, the man was here for the party. "Again, I'm sorry-"

"It's alright," Spencer mumbled, looking back to the castle courtyard. "My last night alone, I would not have wanted to spend around that much noise."

"Alone?" The man asked, his voice as quiet as the wind flowing through the courtyard.

Spencer looked back to him, "Come dance with me." The man tilted his head, questioning the prince's offer. "Humor me," Spencer said. 

He wasn't one to initiate contact with people, citing that the spread of bacteria through hand touching was staggering. Tonight however- his seamstress having convinced him to wear gloves- Spencer held out his hand. 

A small smile crossed the man's face, and the sound of his light chuckle caused Spencer to mirror it. He tilted his head back and grasped Spencer's hand with his, "Of course, it's the least I can do."

Spencer's smile grew wider before he turned and started towards a clearing near the courtyard, dragging the man behind him. "You don't know how happy this makes me."

"I can assume," the man said. He pulled Spencer back to him once they entered the clearing, the music from the ball filling the air around them. His hand slid to rest on Spencer's waist, and the other held Spencer's, pulling them into a waltz of sorts.

Spencer tried not to laugh, "Forewarning, I have two left feet."

"I'm sure it won't matter, especially after tonight," he chuckled, walking them around the clearing.

"Of course," Spencer said. He reached up and rested his hand on the man's shoulder, before looking down at his feet. "But I don't want you to think I'm drunk off my ass."

He hummed in acknowledgement, letting the music fill the silence as they danced. A few moments passed before he spoke up, "What did you mean by your last night alone?"

"Ha," Spencer laughed sarcastically, looking up to the man's face. "A horrid example of parent's having too much control over their children's lives, that's all. I'd rather not talk about it."

"Then I'll drop it," he said, dropping his hand from Spencer's waist. Spencer was about to ask if he had offended him when the man pulled Spencer's other hand closer and pressed a kiss to the glove. He murmured, "I'm sorry for upsetting you, tonight seems not to be my night."

Spencer felt his face warm at the action. "Well, so far you've done a pretty decent job in doing the opposite. Don't sell yourself so short." 

"Let me make it up to you, just in case," the man suggested, a warm sense of humor to his tone.

Spencer thought about it. One last night. One last act of defiance. Instead of pride however, he felt a weird sadness settle in his stomach. Suddenly, he felt bad about leading this man on. Spencer sighed. He stepped into the man's personal space, pulling both of them into another dance. "Maybe another time."

"Of course," he said. The sadness in his voice pulled at Spencer's heart but he couldn't. Despite how much this could be sticking it to his father, proving he has his own choice in the matter, the sudden remorse for a man he's never met overpowered the need to show his rebellious nature. 

Spencer sighed, dropping his forehead onto the man's shoulder. Maybe he could deal with the marriage, for his father's sake. What's the worst that could happen, really?


	2. chapter two

Waking up in one of Dave’s rooms was not surprising. His father had not said they’d ride back yesterday, and considering he never met his soon-to-be prison mate, he could have done much worse than a guest bed.

Spencer stretched across the cold sheets, before collapsing back into the mattress. His mind wandered to the man in the garden and that familiar guilt sensation came back to him. Spencer genuinely felt bad to leave him hanging out there after hearing his uncle calling for him, but it’s not as if he could promise the man he’d see him again. “Stupid marriage laws,” Spencer mumbled into the pillow. Not that Spencer would have fallen in love and married the garden stranger, no probably would have just taken him to bed and then left before sunrise. 

There was a knock at his door, Spencer grumbled and buried his face in the pillows. The door creaked open, “Well, glad to see you could make a return to  _ your  _ party last night.” His father said, sarcasm dripping from each word. “Did you even run into your fiancé?”

“No,” Spencer mumbled into the pillow.

He couldn't see but his father shook his head. “Luckily, he ran into me during breakfast this morning. His father sent for him, asking to bring you back to him. So if you’ll get dressed, it’s well past midday and if you want to get back to his court before nightfall you’d have to leave, oh a few hours ago maybe.”

The joke fell flat and Spencer sat up in bed, mumbling a fine and started to rifle through his bag looking for a set of clothes. “Is Derek coming with me?”

“Your guard? Of course, I wouldn’t send you to the bathroom without him standing outside.”

Spencer grimaced at the idea, “Good to know.”

“He’s out in the stables at the moment.”

“Derek or my fiancé?”

“Derek.” His father answered, “He’s preparing Nim and his horse for the journey, I assume the prince has done the same.”

“Did  _ he  _ come with a guard?” Spencer asked because the way his father phrased it, it’s as if the prince journeyed to Dave’s court alone.

His father shrugged. “If he has, I haven’t seen him.”

Now fully dressed in casual wear, Spencer turned to his father who was looking out the window in the room. “You’re ok with sending me to a kingdom I’ve never been to before, by myself, with a man I’ve never met before.”

“I’ve met him, Spencer. He’s not going to kill you or anything,” his father remarked, looking back to his son.

“Who’s killing Spencer?” Morgan asked, walking into the room. His face was twisted in confusion. Gideon chuckled to himself, shaking his head. The guard looked to his ward, who was frowning and glaring at his father. Morgan decided to leave it alone. He walked over and grabbed Spencer’s bag off the ground, “I’ll be down in the stable waiting to leave then. I’m glad you’re awake and well.”

Spencer watched his friend leave, wondering if that was said for his or his father’s sake. “Do I have time to eat?”

“I already said you’d be spending a night out in the woods, should have woken up earlier.” Gideon mused.

Spencer frowned, crossing his arms. “Well I didn’t know this was happening, otherwise I would have filled out my planner and cleared my schedule.”

Gideon huffed a laugh, his face still neutral. “Where did you disappear to last night? Dave said you weren’t on the floor at all.”

“Out in the garden,” Spencer supplied. “I needed some fresh air.”

Gideon nodded, accepting the half-lie. “Go grab something to eat before you leave, I’m sure Hotchner will be happy to leave before nightfall.”

Spencer groaned, leaving his room and making his way to the kitchen. “I hate riding at night.”

There was a laugh behind Spencer as he entered the kitchen. Dave walked up behind him, “Slept in?”

“Yeah, and it seems my fiancé’s father wants to meet me. So I have to ride out with him and considering how late it is…” Spencer let his sentence trail off, grabbing the toast being handed to him.

Dave nodded, “I see. Safe travels then.”

“As safe as they can be,” Spencer said. He frowned, taking a bite out of his bread. The longer he drew this out, the more guilt piled itself on. Of course he felt an obligation to his father to follow through with this, but his own self worth fought to control his own life his own way. Spencer sighed, and pressed a hand to his temples, a headache crawling forward.

“As long as Morgan’s there,” Dave said, like it was a comfort to Spencer. “If he tries to do anything, he’ll hightail it back here with you in tow.”

Spencer hoped his friend would intervene if something bad were to happen, so that train of thought was a given. He looked down to see he finished his bread, and decided that if he ate anymore he might throw up on his fiancé and wouldn’t that be a sight. Divorced and laughed at because he vomited bread on another prince. Spencer stifled his laugh.

“I guess I just have to rip off the bandage.”

Dave raised an eyebrow, “Oh?”

“I never met him last night,” Spencer explained. He brushed off crumbs from his vest, “And he’s waiting for me in your stable, I can’t avoid him forever.”

“It seems you can’t,” Dave said. The older man stepped closer to Spencer and then reached up and pressed two kisses to each of Spencer’s cheeks. “Again, safe travels figlio.”

Spencer batted the older man away, walking towards the door, “Stop it, I’m not a kid anymore.”

“You’ll always be a kid!” Dave called after him.

Spencer assumed that Morgan got impatient, seeing as the guard was walking down the hall towards him. Morgan stood in front of Spencer’s path, crossing his arms across his chest.

Spencer smiled innocently, “What’s the matter?”

“Are you doing this on purpose?” Morgan asked, tapping his foot on the ground. “You can walk as slow as you want, but we  _ have  _ to get going now.”

The prince rolled his eyes, “I’m sure-”

“Nah, not letting you get away with that,” Morgan crowded Spencer before picking him and throwing him over his shoulder.

Spencer started kicking, “Hey! Put me the hell down! What’s your problem?!”

“My problem? No, what’s  _ your _ problem.” Morgan said, walking towards the stables. “You may not want to follow through with this, but orders are orders and we need to leave now.”

Spencer slumped in Morgan’s grasp, “This is embarrassing.”

“I’ll put you down before we get there, I’m just making sure we  _ actually  _ make it there,” Morgan said. “What happened to you last night by the way?”

“I met a guy…” Spencer mumbled, his face heating up in embarrassment. Morgan whistled low, laughing when Spencer punched his back. “We didn’t do anything!”

“You had one last night to yourself and you didn’t follow through with it, yup. That sounds like the Spencer I know,” Morgan teased, adjusting his grip on Spencer so he could put him down without him falling down the stairs. “Stables down below. Want me to come down with you?”

“Of course.”

“Right, my bad.” Morgan chuckled as they descended the stairs. Spencer suddenly wasn’t sure if the bread was the right thing as he felt his stomach lurch with each step.

“I can’t do this-” Spencer announced, turning around and starting up the stairs.

Morgan sighed, following him up the landing. He watched the prince sink to the floor, using the wall as support. He sat down next to Spencer, the younger curling into a ball. “I’m sure you can’t do this, but it’s the sad fact that you have to.”

“I don’t wanna,” Spencer mumbled into his chest. Morgan threw an arm over his shoulder and pulled him into his side. “I just want to go back to two weeks ago when all I had to worry about was if Pen was going to yell at me for wearing two colors that don’t match.”

“I know,” Morgan said. “But, I’ll still be with you for the rest of your life. I’ll abandon my post and run off with you and Penny into no-man’s land if you really want. And don’t assume you won’t see her again. She’ll storm the castle if it meant seeing her favorite prince.”

Spencer huffed a small laugh at the idea of Garcia, covered in bows and glitter, arguing with his father to see him. “I’m scared.” With the omission, Spencer’s shoulders slouched as he let the tension leave his body. “I don’t- What if he doesn’t like me reading all the time? And I talk back constantly, Dave says it's my best quality but I know it’s really annoying. If I anger him, who's to say this wasn’t just for nothing. He might start a war because I wore the wrong shoes to a dance.”

“You won’t know that until it happens, and if he has a problem with you,” Morgan leaned back and poked Spencer’s chest. “You tell me and he’ll be dead before sunrise and we’ll be halfway across the countryside. Live in a nice little cottage till it all blows over.”

Spencer snorted. The idea of him and Morgan living in a little house somewhere on the coast was hilarious. He knew that Morgan couldn’t sit still long enough for it to ‘blow over’, and that Morgan would go down fighting for him. That thought made Spencer really happy. Not happy enough to forgo the anxiety of meeting a man he knows nothing about. “What if he thinks I’m ugly?”

“Then he’s wrong, Spence.”

“But-”

“No, Penny would beat you with a broom if you even think about it so drop it.” Morgan cut him off. He stood up, brushing off his pants before offering a hand to help Spencer off the ground. “Come on, let’s rip the bandage off. Go meet your fiancé before he storms up here to yell at your father that he’s going to be home late.”

“Is he going to be angry?”

Morgan shook his head, pulling Spencer onto his feet. “He doesn’t seem like the type, maybe just complain and hope that does the trick. But who knows, can’t judge a book right?”

“Actually you can judge a book,” Spencer said as they started walking down the stairs again. “The cover and title of a book are exactly what you’re supposed to judge your excitement for reading on, if it’s eye catching or not. People aren’t books though, as intricate as a plot may be, humans have much more depth than a novel.”

“There he is,” Morgan said as they hit the landing in the stable. “Nim is all ready to go, she protested me putting your bags on her like usual.”

“As trusting as ever,” Spencer whispered, walking up to his horse. Her white tail flicked up into the air, her ears swiveling. He reached up and patted the horse on her back. “Hey girl, ready for another long ride.”

“I hope it’s not too long, actually.” A very familiar voice murmured from behind Spencer. 

Spencer’s hand froze, his heart jumping into his chest. _ ‘Oh for fuck’s sake.’ _


End file.
